Leo stirred in his sleep but he didn’t wake up at the sound of the knocking. I tried my best to not wake him as I slid out of bed. I assumed it was just one of the VIXX members verifying Leo’s whereabouts, so after throwing on some clothes and without checking the peek hole, I opened the door.

“Kyuri-yah…” Ravi stood in front of me panting, desperately trying to catch his breath.

“Ravi, what’s wrong? Did something happen?” He held his iPod up and showed me what was on the screen, but his hand was shaking so much I couldn’t see it clearly. “What is it?”

“A picture…of you and Leo entering the hotel.” He handed me his iPod so I could look at the picture clearly myself.

My eyes scanned the screen. It wasn’t just a picture of Leo and me, but next to it was a picture from the night’s showcase of my kiss with Hyuk. Underneath the pictures were a few different articles.

Jellyfish Trainee Making the Rounds Pre-Debut?

Dances with Hongbin and Hyuk before going home with VIXX’s Main Vocal?

Trainee Because of Talent or Boyfriend?

Here it was – my worst fear come to life – and it was only my first performance. I felt all the color drain from my face and with a shaky hand I gave Ravi back his iPod.

“What are we going to do?” I asked praying that this wasn’t real. “This has to be fake, right?”

“I’m sorry, but it’s all real.” Ravi had regained some of his composure by now. “These are just fan cafe posts. I knew you’d want to see them, but don’t take them too personally. If the Starlights read the posts, they won’t believe them.”

I tried to slow down my thoughts and nodded in response to what Ravi had said. It was true. The starlights wouldn’t believe those articles without the guys affirming them anyways. And besides, they’ll be happy as long as their oppas are happy, so why was I worried?

“How do I tell Leo?” I asked, looking back into the room to make sure Leo was still sleeping.

“Just be upfront about it in the morning. He won’t get upset, but don’t keep it hidden from him.” Ravi made a disgruntled face. “But if he does get upset, let us know okay? We’ll calm him down.”

I nodded and quickly hugged Ravi. “Thanks Ravi. I’m really grateful you showed me those posts.”

“Any time, Kyuri. Don’t think about them too much okay? This was only your first appearance so by the next showcase, things could change and the articles could disappear.” Ravi waved goodbye as he headed back to the elevator so he could go back to bed.

As I closed the door, I debated if I should just break the news to Leo now or just to wait until he wakes up in the morning. Seeing as he is not much of a morning person, I decided to just quietly crawl back into bed with him. I didn’t fall back asleep though. Even though Leo’s arms found their way to wrap around me again, I couldn’t stop my thoughts from racing. I guess I’m going to have to prove my commitment to Leo sooner than I had wished. But then a thought crossed my mind.

No one knew about my relationship with Leo, aside from N. The other members had their assumptions but no one knew the two of us were together. That also included the management so we could play this off as just two label mates heading to the hotel after their performance for the night. Leo wouldn’t like this though. He’d rather be upfront about the truth than to lie.

I heaved a sigh and rolled onto my side, turning my back to Leo. Why was this happening?

What felt like mere minutes after the sun had risen just about the horizon, there was more knocking on the door, this time actually waking Leo.

“What’s going on?” He asked with a yawn, watching me walk towards the door.

“I’ll explain in a second, oppa.” I opened the door to see my manager and VIXX’s manager. I knew we were in some deep trouble now.

“What is going on here?” My manager asked. “Were you two sleeping together?”

“Manager-nim, please calm down and give us a chance to explain.”

“Taekwoon, get out of bed. The four of us need to go talk to the CEO.” VIXX’s manager called out to him.

I looked back at Leo, remember he was not dressed at all. I tried to hide my fearful expression from our managers as I tried to see Leo’s response to this early morning intrusion. Skillfully, he managed to pull on his boxers and his jeans so the managers would not notice.  He picked up his shirt off the ground and joined me by the door.

“Why? Are we in trouble?”

“Do you two not know? I thought Ravi came down here last night?” VIXX’s manager asked in confusion.

“Ravi only talked to me last night. Leo was still sleeping and I was going to tell him when he woke up.” I explained.

“I could hear bits and pieces of them talking last night.” Leo admitted. “The CEO wants to talk about the picture, right?”

“The picture and the rumor buzzing articles. It’s kind of hard to defend the people in your company when not even their group members can.” My manager glared at us. I could tell he had some choice words and he was going to give me a serious lecture when he could get me alone. “What is the relationship between you two?”

My heart was beating hard inside my chest and I tried to gather up the strength to tell the managers the truth. God, how much I wished Hakyeon wouldn’t have been able to keep his mouth shut. I glanced up at Leo and noted that he was waiting for me to tell the managers. This was him testing me again.

“We’ve been seeing each other.” I finally managed to say after much stuttering. “We started to become involved with each other after I was told I was going to be a part of the showcase.”

“All those nights the two of you would hang back late and practice?”

I nodded. “Always after a few hours of extra practice though.”

“Jung Taekwoon, I would have never expected this out of you.” VIXX’s manager sighed.

“Kyuri, we’ll be waiting in the hall. You change into something decent quickly and then we’ll head over to the CEO’s office.” My manager pulled Leo out of the room by his wrist and closed the door behind them, leaving me to stand alone staring at the door.

My body began to shake. Now we were in some serious trouble. What if I lose my debut because of this? What if the CEO forces Leo and I to break up? More and more fearful thoughts pounded my brain as I tried my best to change into fresh clothing. My shaky hands were making it quite difficult for me to button my pants or pull down my shirt.

After finally getting dressed and packing away my clothes from yesterday, I checked myself out in the mirror. I looked as pale as a ghost. I wasn’t even going to bother with makeup. I was afraid I’d just cry it all of anyways.

“Kyuri-yah, let’s move it.” My manager banged on the door.

I made my way over to the door and slowly opened the door, looking down at the ground before looking up at the three waiting in the hallway.

“Puppy dog eyes aren’t going to help you, missy.” My manager scolded. “We’re running late as it is.”

I bit my lip and nodded before following after the managers along with Leo. I felt his hand brush against mine before holding it in his. This action alone almost made me burst into tears. He probably figured we couldn’t get into any more trouble and was trying to either calm himself, seeing as his complexion seemed to be just as pale as mine, calm me down, or maybe both.

We wordlessly climbed into the van, Leo still holding my hand. The managers had for sure noticed however they chose not to scold us. We probably had a good lecture coming from the CEO anyways. It was best to leave it all unsaid for him.

As we headed up to the CEO’s office, still with Leo and I hand in hand I might add, we could hear the other employees whispering as we passed. They probably knew about the scandal that was unfolding, but mine and Leo’s skinship at the moment wasn’t easing our accusations.

“The CEO is ready for you.” The secretary said upon our arrival. “Go ahead and head straight in.”

“Have a seat, Leo and Kyuri.” The CEO smiled at us, but the smile faded once he saw our hands. “Now you two are aware of why you are here?”

“Yes sir.” We replied.

“Now I know I allow you guys to date, so if you two wanted to pursue a relationship why didn’t you just be upfront about it and let us know? How are we supposed to keep the press away if we ourselves don’t even know what’s going on? Do you see our frustration with this situation here?” Leo and I nodded. “Now please enlighten me about how long this has been going on. Taekwoon-ssi, you first.”

Leo released my hand and folded his hands in his lap before clearing his throat and looking up at the CEO to speak. “I’ve had feelings for Kyuri-ssi for a while however I didn’t let my feelings be known until after I started to offer her extra help in preparations for the showcase.”

The CEO nodded in understanding. “So is this the same explanation from you, Kyuri-ssi?”

“Yes sir.”

The room was silent for a few minutes as the CEO folded his hands and held them up to his lips as he thought about what to say to us next. I looked back at the managers quickly, only to look back at the CEO again after received the cold glare of my manager. Leo remained silent and motionless next to me, eyes fixated on the CEO.

“Managers, where were you in all of this? Did you have any suspicions of what was going on between these two?” He asked.

“No sir.” VIXX’s manager spoke. “The boys had their suspicions but I myself did not.”

“I had trust in my trainee that she was actually doing as she said. I saw no signs of her doing otherwise.” My manager spoke, enough venom in his voice that made me shiver in my seat.

“Did you tell anyone about your relationship?” The CEO returned his attention to Leo and me. “And don’t lie or they will be in a bind as well.”

“N-N oppa. I talked to him about our relationship and only him.” I said, my voice getting caught in my throat.

The CEO sat back in his seat and let out an exhale. He bobbed his head as he took a second to compose his thoughts. I could feel beads of sweat starting to form on my forehead. My nerves were really getting the best of me now.

“Here’s what’s going to happen, only if you two wish to do so.” He leaned forward on his desk. “Well tell the press that you two are dating, however we will either push back or cancel Kyuri-ssi debut or you two break up and we deny the rumors and everything stays as is.”

“Would I still be a part of the company if my debut got canceled?” I asked, panic really setting in.

“Well if we could find a use for you, we could. Maybe you could be one of the backup dancers or some backing vocals, or else there really is no reason to keep you in the company.”

The CEO’s blunt words shattered my emotional shield and I felt myself begin to cry. Leo turned towards me and placed his hand on my arm in an attempt to soothe me. It was either my career or my relationship with Leo, just as how I had figured it would come down to. I hadn’t even debuted yet so it’s not like I had a fan base or much to worry about.

However I had given up a lot to get to where I am. I didn’t finish high school because I wanted to put all my focus on training. If I were to not debut, my parents would be ashamed of me and feel as if I had wasted their lost time and money. The members of VIXX would probably be upset to see me go and give up on my dream.

I couldn’t ask Leo what he wanted to do. He didn’t have as much on the line as I did. This was all my decision and I knew what Leo wanted me to say. But did I really want to give up my dream for him?

A/N: Hello readers, I am sorry that these updates keep getting so spaced out. I have been extremely busy and just haven't had any real chance to sit down and type. I'm really thankful that you all have waited so patiently and I hoped you enjoyed this update. Please anticipate the next update!